The lobo literally can’t survive these pointless delays. Fewer than 130 of these unique wolves, once an icon of the American Southwest, survive in the entire world. Their recovery has been hamstrung by political maneuvering and by hesitation on the part of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) to do its job in the face of state objections.

The release of additional animals is a critical step toward increasing the genetic diversity and overall health of wild lobo packs. Without urgent action, the world’s most endangered gray wolf subspecies could become extinct in the wild in a matter of years.